NevOn

Imagine if Chevron had used a blog instead

Listening this morning to a BBC World Service radio interview with Peter Robertson, vice-chairman of the Chevron oil company, I was struck in particular by his commentary about a website where the public can join Chevron in an online discussion about the future of energy.

Overall, I found it a fascinating interview, with its discussion of wide-ranging topics including the future of energy, the evolving role of the energy industry (the oil companies) and corporate social responsibility. From a PR point of view, I think Robertson did a pretty good job for his company.

Concerning the online discussion, Robertson was talking about willyoujoinus.com, a website sponsored by Chevron, that's facilitating some discussion about the future of energy and what people think about it.

From a broad look around the site, and judging from the detailed information in Chevron's Community Guidelines page, this is actually a substantial undertaking (and clearly part of a broad public affairs effort):

The willyoujoinus.com discussion forum was created as a place for individuals and groups to exchange ideas on important energy issues. It is also a place for users to read, consider, respond, and perhaps be inspired to take individual or collective action in an environment of mutual respect.

To contribute your opinions, you have to register. And your comments are moderated:

Experienced outside moderators have been assigned to ensure that postings are relevant and appropriate, and otherwise meet the site’s community guidelines as described below.

All postings will be reviewed by moderators and published on the site within 24 hours if determined to be within these guidelines.

That's fine - comment moderation is hardly unheard of and, as long as the policy is clearly stated, unlikely to confuse participants nor set any wrong expectations.

The concept of this effort by Chevron - provide a place online where people can participate in broadly open discussion on a topical issue - is very good, precisely the kind of thing where a blog could work well as that place for open, even if moderated, discussion.

But willyoujoinus.com is not a blog. Instead it's a beautifully-designed and clearly well thought through corporate website with some blog-like naming (the words 'post' and 'comment' are used, for instance).

It's gatekeeper heaven, too, with its completely un-blog-like methodology of contributing your opinions via a web form that goes off to some unknown person or group of moderators  - what Chevron describes as "experienced outside moderators" (without giving a sense of who these people are: could be the PR agency for all I know) and, elsewhere in the site, as "contracted specialists in community moderation" (sounds scary!).

Imagine if Chevron had used a blog instead. With RSS feeds. With trackback capability. It could certainly still require registration and login in order for anyone to participate, and have comment moderation.

Most important, though, a blog could give this place personality and authenticity - two of the attributes which it currently and starkly lacks. And identify who the moderators are. Build some trust.

You're about 80 percent there with this, Chevron. Why not go the full 100? Put your pedal to the metal!

The richness of blogs

One of the best articles about the value of blogs that I've read in a long time was posted by Robin Good yesterday.

Information Overload: Blogs As Content Navigators, Information Filters, Trusted Niche Guides provides a good perspective on one of the curses of modern life, which isn't how to find information - it's how to find, interpret and trust the information that matters to you.

The bottom line:

[...] Blogs stand to benefit in the present media landscape for a number of reasons:

• Because of the overload of information it is impossible for people to keep up with all of it. Information needs to be sifted through and made sense of.
• Bloggers also add richness to the already established reach of mass media.
• Blogs can cater to niche audiences that mass media cannot because mass media must focus on the most important or biggest issues at hand.
• Because of the Internet a blogger can have a niche audience of 5,000 readers a day from around the world.
• A major factor is that blogs have little to no overhead to set up and run. All that is needed is a computer and an Internet connection and a blogger can be up and running, so the distribution costs are cheap.

[Technorati: blogs, information overload]

Factoring blogs into crisis communication planning

A feature on blogs in the current issue of The Economist hardly adds any value with a subject focus that's been flogged to death by some sections of the mainstream media, notably Forbes magazine last October.

Bloggers can be vicious but they can also help companies avert disaster, says the sub-title as The Economist devotes 10 paragraphs of its 14-paragraph article discussing the negative aspect of blogs and the potential reputation and other damage that a company can suffer at the hands of bloggers.

One reality point, I suppose, is that the article positions blogs among other long-standing social media like online discussion groups (aka forums or chat rooms) and email lists that have been around for years, so a reader of this article would hopefully not form an impression that blogs are just some form of unique evil manifestation of the worst in people.

And there's the rub for me. Yet another article in a mainstream medium where the overall feeling you have after reading it is that blogs and other online communication media are something mostly to be feared and concerned about, so you'd better get your crisis communication plan ready (as the article concludes) for a disaster.

Yes, get your crisis plan ready but not just because, suddenly, there seem to be blogs out there written by bloggers determined only to do you damage!

Let's say you have your crisis communication plan ready to roll so that you are prepared for any eventuality. And that eventuality doesn't necessarily mean a negative thing - the ability to respond quickly and decisively isn't always to do with the negative use of the word 'crisis.'

What's different today  - and this is the real point - is that blogs and other new social media (eg, podcasts) should also be factors you will consider and take into account in your crisis communication planning. Not only from the point of view of what such media are saying about your company, your brand, etc, but also how you can make use of such media.

If you want to see some really thoughtful commentary on how blogs fit into overall communication planning, crisis and otherwise, take a look at the posts in the Challenges of Corporate Blogging section in Global PR Blog Week 2.0.

Engaging podcasts from IBM

I've been subscribed to IBM's investor relations podcast series "IBM and The Future of..." since IBM started this series last August.

Eleven podcasts so far, each one providing a worthwhile learning experience on wide-ranging topics relating to society, business and technology.

The latest one, IBM and The Future of Privacy, is a great example of how any organization can use this medium to address what might seem to be a pretty dry subject in a way that captures and holds a listener's attention. Engages the listener, in other words.

From the broad communication point of view, this series also demonstrates how podcasting can subtly reinforce a company's credibility and authority about the subject being addressed. And it doesn't matter how big or small the company is - you don't need to be a global corporation like IBM to realize the benefits from podcasting.

Not only that, it enhances one's overall perceptive view of that company and how it gives you another choice of getting hold of information and opinion in a way that gives you additional insight into the company and some of its people.

If the podcast is also one element among other open and connected communication channels - as is the case with IBM - then you have another good foundation for building sustainable relationships with your audiences (who then become participants).

Worth subscribing to.

Related NevOn posts:

• IBM's credible message: Blogging means business
• IBM starts investor-focused podcasts
• IBM publishes guidelines for employee bloggers

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Microsoft's Windows Live power play

Participating in the first UK preview of Windows Live in London last Thursday evening was a worthwhile experience. This event was the first public (ie, to a private group) UK presentation of and discussion about the collection of new internet-based services from Microsoft that are currently in beta testing.

I've not yet directly experienced any of the constituent parts of Windows Live (I'm on the beta sign-up waiting lists) other than pop in now and again to the website portal and play a bit with the Ajax-based customization features where you can add and subtract content that will appear in your personalized page.

Here's a screenshot so you can get an idea:

As I mentioned in conversation at the event, I've not been that impressed with it. Ok, it is a beta, but it's not been anything that has really held my attention or interest other than to note that it's in development and will likely be a big consumer offering once it moves into the more polished and getting-to-final development stages. Still pay attention to what's happening with it, in other words.

What I learned last Thursday is that this view is pretty narrow and barely scratches the surface of what Windows Live is actually all about.

So what is Windows Live? Briefly, it comprises these layered services:

• Live.com - the portal/home page shown in the screenshot above (developer blog)
• Windows Live Mail - the successor to Hotmail (developer blog)
• Windows Live Mobile Search - a personalized search tool for certain smartphones that lets you save those searches on your phone
• Windows Live Messenger - the successor to MSN Messenger (developer blog)

You can read the Microsoft press release from last November for the formal description of Windows Live, and there's a pretty good review by Paul Thurrott that goes into some detail about it all and links to an interesting analysis of the evolution of MSN into Windows Live.

So last Thursday's event in London was worthwhile in providing everyone there (some 30 people plus MSN and the PR agency) with a better focus on the overall offering and where it's at in its development cycle.

That's not the half of it, though.

Discovering Windows Live

Light blogging until the weekend as I'll be in London tonight for the first UK preview of Microsoft's Windows Live.

Windows Live is a set of personal internet services and software designed to bring together in one place all of the relationships, information and interests people care about most, with more safety and security features across their PC, devices and the web. While it has clear benefits from an individual consumer's point of view, I'm especially interested in learning more about those benefits from the business point of view.

More later. Meanwhile, if you want to learn a little about Windows Live, here are some places where you can:

• Windows Live website
• Windows Live Ideas - try out some of the cool things
• What the media is saying about Windows Live
• What bloggers are talking about
• Paul Thurrott's review of Windows Live

[Technorati: windows live]

IABC launches News Centre

It's often a good idea to just click on things on a website as you might discover something new.

That's what happened this morning on the IABC website as I was reviewing information there about the 2006 International Conference which takes place in Vancouver in June (I'm speaking at that event; a post about it soon).

In the Updates section on the home page, there's a link to the new IABC News Centre, a media resource with the latest news and information about IABC's programmes and leaders (it says).

The new resource uses PR Newswire's MediaRoom tool, providing a dedicated section with detailed information such as contact details, news releases, photos, logos, backgrounders, bios, white papers, etc. All the things journalists - and interetsed IABC members - need to get that accurate and rounded picture of what IABC is and what it does.

This is a very long overdue, and very welcome, addition to the IABC website which itself was relaunched in October. Finally a dedicated place to get the news and information about IABC and its activities. The News Centre is being managed by IABC headquarters staffer Joseph Ugalde, who's in charge of marketing and communication for the association. Yesterday's official press release here.

The best news, though, is that the site offers six RSS feeds where you can sign up to get all press releases and information including about the International Conference, the Gold Quill Awards and the IABC Foundation.

No more hunting and pecking for accurate news (the old info page really was dreadful).

I sense the hand of some willing and skilled member volunteers as part of making the News Centre happen especially Shel Holtz, my podcasting partner, who in one of our recent shows (can't recall which) alluded to some new things coming soon to the IABC website.

Great move, IABC.

[Technorati: iabc]

Weblogs for PR - plenty of opportunity awaiting

The initial findings of the EuroBlog 2006 survey on weblogs and communication management were published today, offering some interesting analysis on the state of awareness and acceptance of blogs by the PR community across Europe.

The survey was carried out online last November and December, and nearly 600 PR pros from over 33 European countries participated (I was one of those), according to the organizers.

Some commentary has already begun appearing in PR blogs - especially an excellent overview analysis by Philip Young, one of the driving forces behind EuroBlog 2006 - which largely focuses on the divide between those in the PR community who 'get it' and those who don't. Well, no surprises there.

The survey has some useful stats on why PR practitioners haven't gone for blogs in a bigger way (top reason: 31.3% of respondents saying the benefits from blogs are unclear to them) or the factors limiting the take-up of blogs (top reason: 44.4% of respondents citing their inability to control the communication content - definitely no surprise there).

This reflects what I hear all the time when I'm speaking to PR agencies - a group of people who, in my experience and broadly speaking, have the same needs for information and knowledge about new media channels as any other group of people or organization.

What I found most interesting in this survey was the stats about how the respondents see the opportunities for and from blogs.

Look at this slide:

The top reason given is surprising to me in that it doesn't reflect what I hear PR people saying in conversation - what I hear are words similar to "receiving feedback from the audience" which came in last on the slide above, or "reaching new audiences", coming in halfway up.

Perhaps that disparity is a lot to so with the corporate-speak I hear too frequently and the real thinking individual people are willing to share when taking a survey like this.

So now we know - PR agencies want to be seen as being cool ;)

I'd like to see the detailed results before further commentary. A PDF of the initial results is available now for download.

Detailed findings about the survey will be presented to a symposium "Public Relations and Social Software: Meeting the Challenges of Weblogs, Podcasts, Wikis and RSS," to be organized by Euprera (the European Public Relations Research and Education Association) and MFG Baden-Wuerttemberg in Stuttgart, Germany, from 16-18 March, where academics from across Europe will discuss ways of taking the research forward.

Edelman PR podcast coming

News via email today from Phil Gomes about earSHOT, a new podcast from Edelman PR, that he will be presenting. Phil wouldn't say when the first edition will be out other than "soon" (and that it will be cool).

If you sign up now to the RSS feed, you'll get the teaser podcast, a 40-second MP3 in which Phil outlines what earSHOT will be about.

Looking forward to hearing the show, Phil. I'm subscribed already!

Blair and Cameron podcast firsts

You know podcasting has now definitely entered the mainstream when two politicians - one a Prime Minister no less, and both leaders of their parties and members of the government - use the medium in conjunction with two national newspapers to convey particular messages to voters in the UK.

Yesterday, Prime Minister Tony Blair was interviewed by The Sun newspaper in that paper's first podcast. He uses the medium to talk about cleaning up anti-social behaviour in towns and cities (a hot political issue in the UK at the moment).

On Tuesday, new Conservative Party leader David Cameron became the first UK political party leader to record a podcast by using The Daily Telegraph's regular podcast service (which the paper launched in November) to speak about broader political issues and attacked Blair's anti-social behaviour plans. Unlike Blair's podcast, Cameron's was not an interview - he simply talked during a seven-minute segment in conversational style.

Initial impressions - Blair's interview doesn't sound that different to the type of scripted interview you'd hear on the radio. In contrast, Cameron's delivery sounded spontaneous and informal.

A very interesting development in communication in UK politics.

Shel and I will be talking about these podcasts from the communication perspective in today's edition of For Immediate Release: The Hobson & Holtz Report podcast, which we'll be recording this evening Amsterdam time.

[Update] In a comment to this post, Niall Cook points out that the first leader of a UK political party to do a podcast was, in fact, Charles Kennedy of the Liberal Democrats. Kennedy did six podcasts in April and May 2005 - that's eight months ago - during the UK general election campaign.

So much for journalistic fact-checking - the Telegraph says quite clearly in its podcast that Cameron is the first party leader to do a podcast. Clearly not so.